New Bloodlines
by ArminaSkitty
Summary: When your friends are dying in front of you and you're too damn weak to do anything about it frustration and fear can make things happen, like revealing Bloodlimit powers you never had before. You're special, all you wanted was to be a normal Nara.
1. Ascension

New Bloodlines

By Armina Skitty

Authors Notes: Hyuuga and Uchiha are acknowledged Blood Limit lines, but what other Limit Lines are there in Konoha? Some people simply assume that Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, Inuzuka and Aburame are all Blood Limit lines; but are they? Yes, the clans have abilities that no other clans use, but they are never declared to be Limit clans. What they do is specialize in a specific kind of technique in the same way Naruto specializes in Kage Bushin and Sakura specializes in Medical jutsu.

So, new theory that I'm proposing is Proto-Lines; Bloodlines that are close to, but not quite Limit lines. These clans use techniques that anyone can use, but they use them in ways that few can; with more finesse and power.

Now comes the phrase that all of those who follow my work have been waiting for: _WHAT IF_ these Proto-Line clan members can force their abilities into maturity? _What if_, when the newest generation is under a great deal of stress, the abilities that should be unreachable for another couple of generations, are suddenly reached? What would that person and his /her friends make of the new strength and skills that an otherwise normal person now possesses? And _WHAT IF_ the person who is now incredibly special for being the first of a new Blood Limit line was the one person who wanted to be completely normal above all else?

Oh, btw, you can thank my subconscious sleeping mind for this. I actually dreamed up the basis of this story and then when I was half awake and not coherent I tweaked it into a working story.

All story charas: ……………….WTF?

Side note: I am my own beta reader. Please pardon my typos

* * *

The battle was a total rout, a complete disorganized mess that had no rhyme or rhythm to it; just the way Orochimaru wanted. The messier the fight, the harder the particular 'head' of this Leaf serpent would have to work to clean it up. Shikamaru was not an opponent to underestimate; Orochimaru had nearly lost his future body thanks to the powerful mind possessed by this otherwise unremarkable Chuunin.

The Snake Sennin observed the fight from his safe vantage point in a tree far distant from the battle. He had less than six months left before he could claim his beautiful boy's body as his own, and he knew that Konoha was going to be anxious to reclaim the boy before that could happen. Thus, this battle; a preemptive strike to force Konoha to think of other things than one unimportant, missing Uchiha. Too bad the one directing the counter-strike was the most brilliant young strategist that the Shinobi world was likely to see.

Orochimaru had been forced to admit to the merit in teamwork and had directed some of his forces to learn to work together. Konoha was still superior, and even though they were currently out-numbered three to two in this fight, they were pushing back Sound. And the fight was growing more organized, again.

The Snake frowned, this boy was admittedly impressive. He could see this 'Shikamaru' from his vantage point; the boy was badly injured, unable to put any weight on his left leg, but he was still directing the counter-strike like a seasoned general. His comrades were guarding him with their own bodies while others came and went to receive his instructions and then carry them out. This would not do, someone of that kind of potential must be eliminated.

"Tell the Three to go take out the 'Head'." He told Kabuto, who stood at his right side as per usual. The traitor medic Nin nodded and leapt off to inform the Sound Three. Technically the Sound Three was Four, but Sasuke was rarely allowed out to perform the same duties as his fellow Cursed shinobi. Still, the Three were more than enough to take care of one unremarkable Chuunin with a single remarkable trait of high intelligence.

_When they are done with that small chore, they can refocus their attention on acquiring the Hyuuga prodigy for me. I need all the Bloodlines I can capture, if I'm ever going to obtain _ThatFor now though, other things had to be looked to. The battle grew ever more organized. Orochimaru knew he'd have to find a new vantage point or be absorbed into the fray since the line was being pushed back. All thanks to one young genius. _Blast that boy!

* * *

_

The battle was a total rout. _Damnit! Damnit all to hell!_ Shikamaru thought calmly. His leg had been sliced to the bone from inner, upper thigh to just above the outside of his knee and the only reason he hadn't bled to death by now was because Sakura was one damned good medic apprentice. She had stopped the bleeding and partly sealed the wound, but hadn't spared more time than that save to instruct him to bind it and stay off of it. She had to ration her strength and her time for the other wounded.

And there were many of those who needed tending to. _Because I'm not good enough;_ the brunette thought. If he was stronger, he could be down there fighting beside his friends. If he were more skilled, half of the wounded wouldn't _be_ wounded. If he were smarter, this battle would already be over. If he was more knowledgeable, he could have seen this battle coming and it might have been avoided entirely. But he wasn't, wasn't stronger, wasn't more skilled, wasn't smarter, wasn't more knowledgeable.

And why was that? _Because I'm such a lazy, fucking bastard and I can't be bothered by something so 'troublesome' as training or research._ Another comrade fell beneath the kunai wielded by the Sound. This wasn't a person he knew at all; but as this person, who could have become a treasured friend, fell, unable to scream because of the blood clotting in her throat, Shikamaru felt cold rage war with self-hate to consume him.

A different Leaf comrade leapt past Chouji and Ino, who were standing guard, to crouch beside him. "Shikamaru-san, I need-" the person started, but was interrupted as the shadow-user spouted out a few quick instructions. There was no need for his comrade to ask him what he and his team needed to do. Shikamaru had seen where his fellow shinobi had come from and could clearly see what needed to be done to push back the Sound and regain a little organization. The shinobi leapt back to follow the instructions.

Suddenly, the flow of this living, breathing, bleeding chess game- shifted. The Otonin's pulled away from a certain area, faces showing awe and fear. Three Sound shinobi moved through the path made for them by the others. _Where are they-?_ His eyes widened in surprise, _they're headed _here

He struggled to his feet as the leader of the threesome locked gazes with him, and smiled. Predator had seen prey and the prey was weak and injured. _Damnit!_

"Shika, what's wrong?" Chouji, loyal, faithful Chouji, who deserved friends ten times, a hundred times better than Shikamaru, asked as he saw his friend struggle to rise to a fighting stance.

"We're about to have company." He growled in return, not breaking gazes with the enemy that was approaching. Why? Why was he the target? _Why me? I'm useless; I can't even last ten minutes into a fight without being fatally injured!_ He tensed, hands moving instinctively in the seal patterns he knew best. Kage Mane no jutsu. He wasn't going to just sit there and let his friends fight for _his_ life while he did nothing.

The three stopped just out of his range, far shorter than normal thanks to his injury, and the leader smirked at his weakness. The smirk was erased a moment later as an orange whirlwind slammed into him, accompanied by a green hurricane and a white typhoon. Naruto, backed up quite well by Lee and Neji.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, going after an injured guy!" Naruto bellowed. _Thanks, baka, my pride wasn't aching enough without you saying anything._

"Why, just removing the head of the snake. What did you think we where doing?" The leader drawled, casually wiping the blood from his mouth and allowing the Curse Seal marks to crawl over his body. Naruto growled, as did Lee and Chouji while Neji contented himself with narrowing his eyes hostily.

"That- that looks like the marks that were on Sasuke-kun that one time." Ino stated in an undertone towards Shikamaru. _Totally disregarding the fact that I'm not the leader of this counter-strike so these people are trying to eliminate me for no reason._

"You weren't there on that botched retrieval mission, so you didn't see it." The shadow user replied to the unspoken question. "That's the Curse Seal marks that some of Orochimaru's minions use."

"Only his favorites get this power, weak one!" One of the three, a small man with a hunched back and crazed look howled.

"Don't call Shikamaru weak, you spineless coward!" Chouji howled back, launching himself at the psychotic hunchback. _But it's true, I am weak. How many hours have I wasted cloud gazing and playing shougi when I could have been training?_ Lee fell back to fill Chouji's place, willingly putting his body and his life between danger and someone who felt he didn't deserve to be protected.

Shikamaru had seen the kunai strike that had laid open his leg coming. He'd seen it, tried to dodge it, and had failed utterly because his body wasn't strong enough nor fast enough. Everyone thought he was so smart, but he'd stupidly squandered the time that he should have been using to better himself.

Now, friends that he didn't deserve where going to risk their lives in protecting him. Protecting him, when, if he'd just been a little smarter, he never would have gotten injured in the first place.

The leader of the three, a man that seemed to be a grey copy of a human, launched himself at Naruto, striking out with a kunai… except the kunai seemed to grow… and the blonde wasn't dodging far enough…

"Naruto! Watch the blade! Get out of there!" Shikamaru screamed. Wisely, the loudmouth jumped back farther out of reach instead of questioning the shadow-user's command.

"Very good, you noticed that right away." The leader said, raising his newly formed sword before him, "Just what I expected out of someone Orochimaru-sama deems a threat." Shikamaru grit his teeth angrily, his frustration at his own weakness growing by the second. The leader pulled out a shuriken and manipulated it into a large three-bladed boomerang shape.

_I've heard of this power before, the ability to manipulate inanimate objects into different forms. But from what I recall, only the form could be changed, not the size or mass. He must be getting the ability to change the mass from the curse seal._ He tried to relay this information to Naruto, but the battle between the blonde and the matter manipulator was already joined. Trying to tell the number one loudmouth anything now was a task in futility.

_But what's the specialty of these other Snake worshipers? There's the hunchback and that weird woman with all that hair. And if she's not color-blind than she's completely lacking in taste. What's with all that neon yellow?_

The hopefully colorblind woman was faced off against Neji and slitted her eye's coyly at the Hyuuga prodigy while pulling a strand of hair through her lips. There was something going on there, something happening in her thick, blood-red mane…

Neji spotted it at the same time Shikamaru did and dodged wildly, pulling out the short sword he'd taken to in an attempt to fend off the rapidly growing hair. The red locks had taken a life of their own and were now seeking Neji out to kill him. The Curse-Seal was taking over the woman, lending power and greater growth to the mane.

And greater durability, no matter how the Hyuuga slashed at the hair, nothing happened, it wasn't cut. _This is bad;_ Shikamaru thought. A crash from the other side of the canopy called his attention over there. He then learned what the hunchback's power was.

The deformity was apparently very useful when it came to storing all manners of creepy-crawlies. The cloak the madman had been wearing had been cast aside, revealing slits and gaping mouths in the hump; all of which were spilling insects, snakes and other creatures. Ino screamed when she saw this and frankly Shikamaru couldn't blame her. _Chouji…_

The Akimichi was being hard pressed, but was still meeting the challenge, enlarging his fists and feet to successfully squash the creatures attacking him. But then the madman started cackling even louder and more manically as the Curse Seal started to spread. And the creatures being sent out were becoming weirder…

A scorpion- type- thing- managed to get around Chouji's guard and stung his leg, making him cry out as the venom set to work almost immediately.

"Chouji!" "Chouji-kun!" Shikamaru and Ino cried out in unison. Ino did what Shikamaru couldn't and leapt out to defend her teammate, brandishing the throwing knives that she had begun using. The small, wicked things easily cut down a large number of the creatures, but more kept coming.

A strangled cry came from Neji, jerking Shikamaru's attention to his other friend. Neji had done well, but not well enough. Although the hair woman bore many small wounds and was favoring one leg that had a kunai sticking out of it, it was the Hyuuga that was fairing the worst.

One arm hung uselessly, obviously broken, and the hair was catching up with his dodging. As Shikamaru helplessly watched, it wrapped around the prodigy's legs and threw him into the trunk of one of the mammoth Konoha trees. The hair retracted, allowing Neji to lever himself up, glaring and spitting up blood. He was clearly being toyed with.

"Neji!" Lee cried out, leaping over to his teammate's side, "Your opponent is me now!" He yelled at the woman.

"Fine by me," she purred, "Two is always better to play with than one."

A loud outcry jerked Shikamaru's attention over to where a blur of orange was doing battle with a blur of grey. Naruto was incased in a pulsating red aura but the morphed blades were cutting through it like a hot knife through butter.

_Cold_ _Iron weapons?_ That made sense; unlike conventional iron, Cold Iron negated chakra and could inflict nasty burns even on someone as underpowered as Shikamaru himself, simply because he was shinobi.

Slicing through the seemingly demonic aura encasing Naruto wouldn't be a problem. And any cut that Naruto received from such a weapon would probably hurt the blonde worse than a similar sized wound inflicted on some like the brunette, simply because Naruto was so much more powerful.

Naruto snarled loudly and lunged at the grey-hued, matter manipulator, arm raised high to slash down. The grey man ducked down and slammed a spiky metal clad fist into Naruto's gut. The blonde let out a scream that left no doubt to the amount of pain he was suffering.

The red aura snuffed out as the baka flew back into the trunk of another tree, only to fall into the crook between two branches, unconscious. The grey man let out a sigh, then turned to lock gazes with Shikamaru. And smile.

"Kami! Oni! Enough playing, we have a job to do!" the leader said, leaping towards his prey. _Weak… _Chouji had collapsed, clutching the swelling leg that had been stung. _Not enough… _Ino was now unconscious, numerous small wounds and deep bruises giving evidence as to why. _Too weak… _Neji was bound to the trunk of a tree, struggling against the hair that didn't break down as readily as the web of his opponent from so many years ago. _I'm just too weak… _Both of Lee's legs were bent at unnatural angles, giving testament to his battle against the hair woman. _I'm such a fool…_

"Let's finish this quickly and take the Hyuuga back to Orochimaru-sama."

_Weak. Hopeless. Pathetic. Unskilled. Fool. _He watched the leader shinobi sent to kill him race in closer. Other Leaf shinobi were also racing in, alerted by Naruto's loud scream, but they weren't going to arrive in time. _Pathetic… _Especially since the hair woman was coiling one tress into a blade aimed at Lee's heart. _Hopelessly weak… _And the hunchback had pulled out a stiletto blade and was lunging at Chouji. _Why am I…?_

"Enough of these games." The grey man growled. _Why am I so weak?_ "I've had enough of playing with weaklings." _My friends need me, why am I so weak?_

_…Especially when I can be stronger._ Rage, fear, frustration, need, protectiveness all swirled together into a cocktail of powerful emotion and tipped Shikamaru over the edge. Something snapped inside of him and raw instinct took over.

One thing that had always frustrated him in the past was the fact that he could only manipulate his own shadow. As he reached down to rip off a small branch, he suddenly realized that this was something that could be overcome.

He made the necessary seals for Kage Kubi Shibari no jutsu around the branch as the grey man paused just out the reach of the earlier Kage Mane.

"Why do you still fight when you know there's nothing you can d-" The Otonin broke off as he looked closely at Shikamaru's face. Whatever he saw there, it scared him. A very wise thing, since the shadow user was in a Very Bad Mood.

If you wanted to mess with him, fine. Shikamaru didn't care, too much. Just don't fuck with his friends. This new instinct surging through his body forced him to reach out with his own shadow, _into_ the shadows of the surrounding trees and wrap them around the enemy similar to the way Gaara used his sand.

Somehow he knew that if he wished to, he could kill these three enemies in the same way as Gaara did with his Desert Coffin. He didn't wish too, that was too swift a death for these fools who had tried to kill his friends. There was another way he could kill now.

He clenched his hands around the branch as the three cried out and struggled against him. Shikamaru remember how his opponent nearly three years ago had shrugged off his jutsu when she had gone Level 2. These three had just reached that level nearly simultaneously and he barely noticed the difference, save that his chakra was bleeding out a little faster. _Time to end this._

A thought turned the shadow hands into shadow claws and another thought made those claws shred his foes into dozens of bloody rags.

Silence reigned after what remained of the three Otonins' bodies fell as Shikamaru released his jutsu. The other Sound forces stared at him in fear and backed away rapidly at his glare. The Konoha forces also stared at him in no little fear. Well, most did, but Sakura had other things on her mind than her former classmate's sudden power up, like her badly injured friends.

The sight of Sakura rushing over to Chouji and using her jutsu to lower the swelling was the last thing Shikamaru saw before he passed flat out.

* * *

Orochimaru blinked. And blinked. And just for good measure, blinked again. But the sight didn't change; the Sound Three, _his_ Three, had been reduced to bloody bits by a no-power Chuunin whose only saving grace was a strategic genius. Then he grinned; he knew very well that the Nara's were a Proto-Line, and it seemed as if this boy had prematurely activated the promised Limit. If the boy lived through the Ascension… this could be promising.

He did want to gather all the Bloodlines he could after all, and if this boy was the only one of his kind… Orochimaru licked his lips in anticipation. He liked acquiring rare things. This 'Shikamaru' youth wasn't going to come willingly like Sasuke had, but that was of no great concern. What couldn't be coaxed could be coerced, and what couldn't be bent could always be broken.

Well, enough of this fight. The diversion had been successful, if not in the way he would have chosen. But this could be better, _if_ the boy lived. Konoha would certainly have more on its mind than one missing Uchiha if the youth did survive, that much was certain.

A gesture made his spooked troops retreat in a more organized manner than the panicked flight that they had been threatening. Kabuto watched as his master grinned and began to chuckle.

"We'll be acquiring the Nara boy as well, I assume?" He asked the Sennin. Orochimaru merely laughed louder.

* * *

Tsunade rubbed her aching head and glanced at the door of the room that held Shikamaru. When he'd been brought back, he'd been a bad state of exhaustion compounded by blood loss. Further, there was a bad strain on his entire body; a strain that she'd only read about, but had never seen.

It was the strain of a body that was going through a tremendous physical change. This was going to be a difficult case; one that was only going to get worse before it could start to get better if what she read from both ancient texts and from the boy's body were anything to go by. She reached out and opened the door so that she could inform the youth about what he was going to be living through for the next twenty-four hours, at least.

Shikamaru was sitting on the edge of the bed showing all the classic signs of someone who was _not well_. He was pale and shaking, sweat beading his brow in a clear symbol of fever. Due to the fact that he was white lipped and constantly swallowing, she knew he was suffering from nausea as well. A particular smell coming from the trashcan only confirmed the severity of it.

_Dilated eyes, creased brow, probably a headache. The way he's sitting and wincing slightly every now and then undoubtedly means he's hurting in other ways as well. _All of these were signs that the scrolls had mentioned and all were going to get worse.

The Nara youth looked up at her a few moments after her entrance. "Tsunade-sama? What happened? What's _wrong_ with me?"

She sighed, this wasn't going to be easy, "You know that the Nara clan is one of the many Proto-Lines Konoha has, correct?" She asked instead of answered. Shikamaru nodded, it was common knowledge after all. Most of the Academy teachers had been rather disappointed in him for the fact that he hadn't been an active Bloodline after all the potential his father had shown.

Tsunade continued; "Sometimes, in very rare cases, someone in an advanced Proto-Line can activate the potential Limit if put under stress." Shikamaru looked up at her blearily in confusion, "You managed it. That's why you're suffering now, your body is adapting to the activated Nara Limit."

"You- you're kidding right?" the shadow user asked before a shudder passed through his frame.

"No, I'm not. And your current condition is proof of that. I'm ordering you to have at least forty-eight hours of hospitalization to make sure you get through this alright." Another shudder passed through him followed rapidly by another, and it was clear that there was no point in further explanations. Shikamaru wouldn't be able to focus on her words anyway, and he needed care _now_.

A soft call out the open door brought Shizune and Sakura rushing in to help as Shikamaru's condition continued to worsen. His fever soared, and the shudders became mild sporadic seizures. The moment that Tsunade sunk her awareness beneath the surface she discovered another problem. His body was consuming more chakra than he could generate. It wasn't dangerous, _yet_, but in a handful of hours it could be.

"Shizune, go fetch Naruto for me will you?" Tsunade ordered. Even though Naruto had been worn out in a fight against a Curse Sealed Otonin wielding Cold Iron, he still had plenty of reserves left to make a successful chakra transfer, which she and her two apprentices didn't have.

Repairing Lee's legs, Neji's arm, draining the poison out of Chouji and patching up the many wounds Ino had had drained the three of them considerably. And that wasn't including all the other injuries that the other fighters had that had needed tending. They didn't have the necessary power to keep Shikamaru's body functioning if the current trend continued. But Naruto did.

And he came willingly, even eagerly to aid his friend. Tsunade took the opportunity to show Sakura how to do a chakra transfer. It went very well unsurprisingly, the blonde was a very easy donor and Sakura was her usual eager-student self. In a few brief moments, Shikamaru had the energy that his body was going to need. The Hokage just hoped it was going be enough.

* * *

#The Next Day#

_I wonder if I could get away with killing half the council. _Kakashi mused, _nah, my students would like that too much._ A full War Council had been summoned to discuss the latest attack on Konoha by Sound forces. But so far, all the discussion had circulated around Nara Shikamaru's activation of his Bloodline Limit.

While Kakashi understood that this was a shocking, noteworthy development, it was of little concern when compared to the fact that Sound had attacked them and that Orochimaru still had the Sharingan. _Best not say that around Asuma or Nara-san though; they might kill me. _

Shikamaru's father and sensei were both highly upset by the boy's Ascension. This was completely understandable if what the Copy Ninja had read was anything to go by. And what he was hearing currently was only making the two devoted role models for the boy even more nervous.

"I know that some members of this council do not wish to hear it," One old geezer, a lackey of Danzou, said, "but I must insist that this boy have his chakra sealed before he can become dangerous."

"And I must insist that old fools like you who jump at shadows keep your fat mouths closed before you spark a scene." Arashi, an old friend and teammate of Yondaime's, growled before anyone else could say anything. The brown-haired, green-eyed man had left Konoha as a place too painful to stay after the Kyuubi's defeat and had only recently reentered Konoha, just before Naruto had returned.

Due to his level-headedness and acquired wisdom he had been placed on the council, much to the dismay of some members. To say that he was causing a stir would be a tremendous understatement, especially since he was prone to comments like that when an old fool was being… well, an old fool.

"What did you say you impudent puppy!" the geezer cried out, slapping his palms against the table dramatically. Arashi quirked a brow, he was in his early forties, older than Kakashi, so the 'puppy' statement was ill-placed.

"I'm saying that you, good sir, are being an idiot." He said while straightening out of his slouch, "The Nara boy hasn't done anything yet and is still ill with fever if I'm up to date on my gossip." He glanced at Tsunade, who nodded. "The only clue we have to his new abilities is what he did in the heat of battle in defense of his friends and teammates. It would be incredibly foolish to judge him on that account alone. We need to wait to see _if_ he becomes a danger, which I doubt."

"And if he does become a danger," another old geezer, one a little calmer than the one who was currently battling a fit of apoplexy, "what then?"

Arashi shrugged, "_If_ it comes to that, I'll seal up his chakra myself. Although, since _I_ have actually looked into this boy's history, I sincerely doubt that he'll do anything that could harm his friends. Thanks to being properly raised," he nodded respectfully to Nara-san and Asuma, "his character is very good, if a little lazy."

"Yes but what if-" a third person, a common civilian this time, started to say.

"I'm sorry, but Arashi-san has brought up too many good points." Tsunade stated firmly. "Nothing will be done at this time to Nara Shikamaru, except for continued medical observation until the time that his fever breaks. Doing anything save for medical _care_ at this point in time would not only be ridiculous but cruel and inhumane."

"But what if he goes mad!" the civilian cried out hysterically. "Everything that I've heard of about new Bloodlines is that they all go stark, raving mad!" The entire council room started to buzz in semi-hysterical speculation. Nara-san looked white with paternal fear while Asuma was slightly green.

"Where the hell did you hear that?" a strong female voice said over the babble. The babble died down slightly. An older, middle-aged woman stood to enforce her point, "I've researched this subject very carefully since the boy is in my staff's care and in every case I've read where the new Bloodline goes insane, a lack of proper care is evident."

_Ah, she's Nabiki, the head of the hospital in Tsunade's absence._ Kakashi eyed her approvingly. She wasn't at all pretty; in fact she was almost homely. But her eyes were kind and strong and her face was full of character. This was a woman who knew her job, knew it well and was adamant about doing it properly. She continued speaking.

"Outside of Konoha, Advanced Blood Limit lines are feared and shunned as monsters and the bringers of war." She explained, "As such, when a new Bloodline emerges, it is usually greeted with fear and revulsion, so the person who is suffering the change from Proto-line to Advanced line is rarely if ever given proper medical care and attention. Nara Shikamaru has already required two chakra transfusions, which he has been successfully given. I can easily speculate that if he has required such a thing, then the Ascended of the past would have needed such a thing, but were not given it.

"Speculating further, if the body requires a large amount of chakra to successfully change, then one of the sources that could be found would be through the body devouring itself, including the brain; thus causing madness." She took a deep breath and swept her gaze around the room, "_Clearly_ this will not be the case here. My staff is taking every precaution to insure that Nara Shikamaru emerges from this in as perfect of health as can be humanly managed. We will not allow him to be driven insane by this." She sat down with a small thump, smiling and glaring triumphantly.

Danzou himself stood. "Regardless and with all due respect, alternate precautions must be made." He said firmly, "While your theory, Nabiki-san, may very well be completely correct, there have been no ascended Bloodlines in Konoha, ever. All of our information has come from outside sources, and may be inaccurate. We must make the assumption that the Ascension itself is the thing that _can_ drive the person mad. I understand that sealing the boy is out of the question for the moment, so instead, he should be put under constant observation by a Jounin. I recommend the Hyuuga boy, Neji. His Byakugan and perception, when paired with his familiarity with the boy, would allow him to notice any- _deviations_ in the Nara boy's personality."

"I will consider your recommendation." Tsunade said, "But now we have far more important things to discuss, such as the impact that Sound's attack has had and the necessary recovery of Uchiha Sasuke before the time limit has been passed."

Kakashi kept half of his attention on the conversation as plans, idiotic and mediocre, were proposed. The other half of his attention was on Danzou's 'recommendation'. The Copy Ninja did not _like_ the man; there was something definitively slimy about the bastard. He wouldn't propose that a promising young Jounin, who was angling to join ANBU, be kept at the low-risk, low-notice task of observation without a reason.

_So what's his reason, where's the string that has to be attached?_ Kakashi knew that Neji had requested to join ANBU because Gai had bragged about it for three hours straight. He also knew that Neji had been turned down due to his lack of field experience. Keeping him in Konoha to watch Shikamaru was only going to deny him that field experience, so what was the point?

He glanced over at the Hyuuga council representative just in time to catch that person trade quick glances with Danzou. _Ah, so that's it._ Neji was in the Branch house, the council representative was in the Main house. Kakashi scanned his memory quickly, and couldn't think of any Hyuuga's that might currently be in AUBU. _So the Main house is trying to keep this mere Branch house member from getting a higher rank than any of the rest of them and they bought Danzou and his cronies to make sure that they get their way._

He really wanted to kill half the council, he truly did. And not just for what they had done either. It wasn't enough for the council to treat one young person as a dangerous animal that they could eliminate at will, nor was it enough for them to play with the life of another young man, just so a small group of fools could maintain their pride. No, they had to clutch to their superstitious fears as well.

Right now over half of them were voting on keeping Naruto penned inside Konoha, to keep him away from Akastsuki, of course. Keeping Naruto on a leash had absolutely nothing to do with keeping a crazed beast under watch, oh not at all. _I really hate politics and the stupid, ignorant, fearful, close-minded fools who enjoy playing with for their own gain.

* * *

_

Shikamaru was lost in shadow. His body burned with fever, but what he felt was alternating searing heat and freezing cold. His body throbbed in time to his heart beat, a sound that dominated his hearing entirely. He didn't seem to be able to catch his breath at all and could only pant helplessly in the vain hope that he could get enough air. But more than anything else, his chakra channels were pure agony.

Later he would find out that those channels had been warping and changing to support his altered abilities, but at the time he only knew that he was in extreme pain that wouldn't stop. At scattered times, he felt himself weaken and couldn't muster the energy to care. Nor could his fevered mind muster the concentration to care. All he knew at those points was that he hurt and that he was so tired and the shadows that swarmed in seemed so peaceful…

Then a yellow-gold light would appear, surrounded by a deep, emerald green or a fresh, clear jade green, and the gold light would chase back the shadows while the green lights would sooth away the hurt and cool the fever. But it wouldn't last. The shadows would stay away for a time, and the pain would recede, but both kept coming back.

Five different times the shadows swarmed him, and five different times gold and green lights came to chase them away. After the fifth time, he braced himself for when the shadows and pain would come to try and claim him, but they didn't come. The shadows fell back into the deep recesses of his mind and didn't bother him. The pain just kept ebbing back until it was the merest phantom in his bones. Then he fell into a deep and natural sleep and didn't dream. Never before had he been so grateful to just _sleep_.

Much later Shikamaru woke, and for the longest time just lay there staring at the ceiling, attempting to string two thoughts together and make them stick. It didn't work, he was still too exhausted. He didn't have the energy to spare to do something so tasking as thinking. The Shadow User let his eyes drift closed, he'd just go back to sleep. Yeah, sleep… sleep was good…

The door to his room banged open and a figure strode in strongly.

"Ah, you're awake." The woman, a nurse, said. _No thanks to you._ He looked over at her and attempted to glare at her as she walked over and placed a surprisingly gentle hand on his head. "And your fever's finally broken. Are you hungry?" Shikamaru's stomach decided to answer that for him with a loud growl.

The woman laughed softly. "Guess that answers that! Wait a moment and I'll get you something." With that, she strode out of the room again, but left the door partly open.

Now that Shikamaru had been jarred completely awake, he decided it be a good idea to sit up and attempt that thinking thing again. The first part was easier said, or in this case thought, than done. His body was completely drained of nearly all energy. And moving hurt… oh it hurt!

His limbs burned at his movement and his muscles and chakra channels loudly protested his demands. Still, he did manage to sit up, after a sizable struggle. Leaning back, he waited for the burning sensation to die down, and then turned his attention to why he was here in the hospital.

There was no doubt in his mind that he was in the hospital, he'd been here often enough to recognize the scenery and smell. _Although I'm usually a guest waiting for my friends to come to so that they aren't alone; not a patient myself._ He glanced around the room briefly and smiled grimly as he noticed that he was completely alone, without friends, presents or even a single flower. _Guess that proves that my self-estimate is right; I'm not worth much after all._

Just as he thought that, a growing commotion brought his attention back to the partly open door. He blinked, it almost sounded like there was a fight going on out ther-

The door burst completely open with a very loud bang and in spilled Ino, Chouji, Sakura, Lee, TenTen, Neji, Kiba, Shino, Hinata and in the front, Naruto. They all started babbling at once.

"You're awake! You're awake! Are you okay!" Naruto.

"I- we were so worried about you! Tsunade wouldn't-" Ino.

"Hey! You're up! Don't you scare us like that again, you bastard!" Kiba.

"I knew that you would recover! You burn too strongly with the fires of youth!" Lee, duh.

"I was so worried when you didn't wake up the fist day! I brought you a fruit basket…" Chouji.

All the rest became a fog of babble as his bed got swarmed and surrounded by his friends who radiated care and concern. The emotional pain that he had refused to acknowledge earlier was washed away as he vainly attempted to get them to speak one at a time. It didn't work; someone else had to do it.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" The voice of God bellowed. Oh, it was only Tsunade. "Out! Out all of you!"

"But Baa-chan..!" Naruto whined, then ducked as she swatted at him.

"That's Tsunade-sama to you whelp."

"But Tsunade-baa-chan!"

"OUT! Now! Before I do you damage!" Out they went with looks of mild panic or huge grins of humor. Shikamaru blinked after them.

"Now I know what it's like to be in the middle of a Naruto Bushin fight." He felt dazed, and the inside of his head felt bruised. Why was that? Tsunade snorted her amusement, and then glared at the figure standing in the doorway.

"I thought I told you not to let those brats in." She said to the nurse who was holding a well-laden tray.

"And I thought I had been doing that, but the girl at the reception desk said that the pack of pups in the lobby all went poof as the real pack raced out." She grimaced angrily, but Shikamaru felt her ripple of amusement. Wait, felt? What was…? Why did…? A tiny breeze brought the scent of food to his nose and all thoughts of puzzlement were overwhelmed as his stomach loudly and firmly demanded **_food!_**

The two older women laughed and the nurse gave the tray to Shikamaru, who very carefully did _not_ snatch it out of her hands, then left. Tsunade sat on the guest chair next to the bed and waited indulgently for her patient to take the edge off of his hunger. She'd been around enough active, growing teenage boys to know that trying to get them to pay attention when food was involved was utterly pointless.

"Now that you can hear me over your stomach," she teased, making Shikamaru blush slightly, "I'd like to talk to you about a potentially serious matter." The young brunette swallowed his current mouthful and turned his full attention to his Hokage. "First off, what do you remember before you started to fever?"

"I remember the fight, and... the way I killed…" he trailed off, he was not proud of what he had done.

"How, precisely do you feel about that?" the Medic genius demanded. She seemed very anxious.

"I… I shouldn't have- killed- the way I did." He confessed and felt her relief distantly, "I don't- I don't know how I did it, but I should have- done something else. I was just so _angry_ and _frustrated_! I was so _useless_ back there and my friends were going to get killed because of my uselessness and-"

"That's enough," she said firmly, raising a hand and staring her subordinate straight in the eye, "First off, you are not, nor have you ever been useless. Many people were saved that day because of your tactics and I will not hear anyone say anything different. As for your friends, not a single one of them had been ordered nor asked to protect you. If they had felt you were worthless, they would not have stood between you and the enemy. They protected you because they wanted to." She believed this, firmly, he felt it. And that frightened him a little. Why did he _feel_ this?

"What else do you remember?" She continued.

"I remember that I shouldn't have been _able_ to do what I did and I also remember waking up here briefly and feeling like total shit. You mentioned something about the Proto-lines, but…" He raised his eyes sheepishly and she smiled gently and sighed.

"I was afraid of that, but I expected that you'd be a bit fuzzy at that point." She settled back in the chair and paused to arrange her thoughts. "As I had mentioned then, some advanced Proto-lines can forcibly activate the potential powers that shouldn't be reachable for another few generations. But only individuals can do this and only when under a great deal of stress. You managed it."

She glanced over at the boy who was very carefully digesting this. "Okay… ah… that would explain the fever?"

"Uh-huh, your body was adjusting to your new abilities and clearly it took a great deal of adjustment. Frankly, if we didn't have the living chakra reservoir known as Naruto, you'd be dead right now. Your body was demanding a great deal of energy and frankly none of us save him had the necessary resources for a chakra transfer. This leads me to think that you just got a massive power up."

Shikamaru's response to this was a skeptical snort. Him? Powerful? Please, only in her drug and alcohol induced fantasies.

"So, uh, if you're insisting that I have new powers, what the heck are they?" he asked. Might as well find out how deep her hallucinations were so that he could inform Sakura-chan and Shizune-san.

"I have no clue, save that we saw one of your abilities earlier." She replied frankly. "You are the first Nara Katoku-jutsu user, so you are going to have to find out what the Nara clan Bloodline Limit is. This is why your movements are going to be restricted to Konoha city limits until further notice."

"Ah-hah…" Lazy bum that he was, having his movements restricted wasn't the world shattering news as it would be to certain (blonde) others, but still. He wasn't too pleased, and neither was the Hokage; her bitterness and frustration was all too clear to his sense, a thing he could not ignore any further. _I guess she's not hallucinating. That or I am._

"These… new abilities…" He started to ask, then paused to rephrase his- question? Statement? _Meh-_ "Ah, first off, I don't know much about Katoku-jutsu… what…_varieties_ of skills should I expect?"

"You are determined to make this tough aren't you?" Tsunade teased, "And again, honestly, I don't know. The variety of Katoku-jutsu based skills a person can have is utterly dependant first on the clan, and second on the individual. Neji, for instance, has a wider variety of skills than many others of his clan, simply because he himself is more skilled."

"So, um…" Shikamaru hesitated, feeling the pressure of Tsunade's curiosity, her concern and her fatigue. This… sense he had, this ability to feel emotion, it seemed to be getting stronger… "S-so a shadow user could- could logically be able to sense emotions, if he was a part of a Bloodline then?"

Tsunade's face became mask-like. "What am I feeling now?" She asked, her tone devoid of all feeling. Shikamaru swallowed.

"W-worry, concern, fatigue an-and a lot of… of… fear." he admitted dropping his eyes, feeling a lot of that last emotion himself. Did she believe him? Was he really sensing this, or was he going insane?

Shaky relief suddenly flooded this new sense and he looked up from his fixated gaze at his knees to Tsunade's face. "That's called Empathy, although I've never heard of it outside of faux science journals and fiction novels." She said, smiling slightly, "Still, if fake science and science fiction claim it's real, it has to have come from somewhere originally. And if the Hyuuga can see inside a person, and the Uchiha can copy any move they've seen with Sharingan, I see no reason why you can't feel the emotions of others."

Shikamaru let out a huge sigh while closing his eyes in relief, so it was real. He idly scanned the room then and noticed the small table by the wall near his bed. Three cut flowers, one small bouquet, two books, a deck of cards, a fruit basket, a shougi board and a go board were on top of it. He blinked.

Tsunade followed his gaze, "Oh, those. I forbid anyone other than necessary medical personnel to enter your room until you woke up; just in case. Those kids, Ino and Chouji especially, weren't pleased by my orders. You have good friends, you're lucky."

"Yeah," he said softly with an equally soft smile, "I have great friends, the best."

"Uh-huh, and now," She rose, drawing his attention back to his Hokage, "it's time for you to sleep." She placed a finger in the middle of his forehead and sudden fatigue swarmed up and swallowed him before he had the opportunity to protest. _Bloody, pushy, cheating woman! _That was his last thought before sleep claimed.

* * *

Katoku- Inheritance, family hardship; Katoku-jutsu- Inheritance technique

My very first review for this fic was a criticism over the fact that I used Doujutsu, which may or may not mean eye technique. So I made a new word so no one can complain now.

* * *

A.S.: #ducks into titanium reinforced bunker# I'm so going to die. I'm going to die a horrible, bloody painful death… #points at Shika# And it's all your fault!

Shika: Me? What the heck did I do?

A.S.: You had to enter one of my dreams and be all cool and powerful and then you got the plot bunnies breeding! Damn you! My readers are going to kill me for starting another fic that I don't have time for!

Shika: . . . . You're insane. But we all knew this already.

Sasuke: Oi! What about me!

A.S.: What about you?

Sasuke: Where the heck am I? You haven't written a Naruto fic yet that wasn't in some way centric around me!

Shika: #mutters something vague and rude about EGO centric, homicidal badasses#

A.S.: Oh, you'll show up eventually. I just have to torment Shika-kun for awhile.

Shika: #twitch# #waves over Sasuke# #whisper# Oi, what does she mean by 'torment'?

Sasuke: #wordlessly passes over latest chaps of Hope Song and Shadow Wolf#

Shika: #reads# SQUICK Ah, right. #packs# Here's my resignation notice. I believe I shall be lea- ACK!

A.S.: #Pounces and ties up Shika# Oh, no you don't! Fanfic characters aren't allowed to quit, it's in your 'I'm not real save in the minds of crazy people' contract! You got to stick this thing out to the bitter end!

Shika: #frowns at the ceiling# And people wonder why I don't like women. They're all crazy!

A.S.: #cackles manically#

Sasuke: Welcome to my world.


	2. Life sucks, but what else is new?

Authors notes: SPOILERS Ahead Cap'n! Steer to port! Steer to port! Just a little timeline info to clear some things up. The Gaara/Akastsuki incident has happened, but Sasori never told Sakura about the meeting at the bridge, so Team 7 never left after that. Kakashi is mostly recovered, and Sai will soon be declared the Sasuke replacement, but not yet. But as you can see, I'm having _Fun_ with the time line from this point on. As in, I get to call the shots now and I'm not even going to glance at the manga for reference from now on, save in the interest of keeping folk in character as much as possible. But just to warn you now, Shika is going to become increasingly OOC, but the reasons will be made clear before- or after-hand; I'm not just going to make a Shika shaped original character without reason.

* * *

_Why am I not really surprised to find them all still here?_ Tsunade mused as she viewed the crowd of young shinobi in the hospital lobby. Ten young faces turned in her direction as she entered and ten sets of eyes begged and/or demanded information on the status of their missing comrade. Often this group was called the Rookie Nine plus Team Gai, but Tsunade often thought of them as the Proud Eleven. The twelfth, obviously, was missing.

But that didn't really matter; the Eleven were more than enough to bet the future on, and so far her usual betting luck hadn't come into play with this one. Each of the Eleven were proud, strong shinobi, each striving to better his or herself in his or her own way. But the thing that really made her proud of them was the unique characteristic that they were displaying right now. Their unity and care for one another.

Naruto, typically, led the charge, followed immediately by Chouji and Ino. Tsunade held up a hand to forestall the inevitably barrage of questions before the Eleven had the chance to start.

"He's fine; he's going to be just fine. He's sleeping right now so you can't see him. If all goes well he'll be released tomorrow or the next day. I don't see any reason why all shouldn't go well and if he somehow _isn't_ released tomorrow you may of course go visit him." She took a breath, "Any other questions?"

Neji raised his hand and cleared his throat softly, "Yes, what precisely happened to him?"

"Good question; here's the answer: Konoha has a new Katoku-jutsu user." She said, and grinned slightly at the barrage of 'whaaaat's' and 'you're kidding's' and 'how the heck's'. It was actually rather amusing, to say the least. "Shikamaru was somehow able to force an Ascension and now the Nara's are the newest Bloodline." She didn't miss Kiba's expression of rueful jealousy, but she also didn't miss the way he firmly struggled with himself to keep it under control. "So what that means is, Chouji-kun, Ino-chan, is that you're going to be minus a teammate until Shikamaru gets a handle on his new abilities."

"What cool new abilities does he have?" Naruto asked excitedly, clearly happy that his friend had gotten a power up. She smiled at him.

"I have no clue, except that he used one of them earlier when he forced his Ascension." Tsunade was slightly surprised when the spontaneous blonde suddenly pouted; although she wasn't as surprised by the unease of the others who had been there.

"That Sound bastard knocked me unconscious, I didn't see it." He sulked falsely. Kiba, Shino, Hinata and TenTen looked confused and curious, they hadn't seen it either. Team 8 had been out on a mission and TenTen had been in another part of the battle.

"You- you didn't really miss much…" Ino trailed off.

"Shikamaru admitted that he wasn't too happy with what happened either, and given the stress of that moment, I'd like to file that one down as battle-induced, temporary insanity." The Hokage told her.

Relief spread throughout the group, well-trained shinobi all knew about battle madness and knew that at times even the sweetest tempered could commit the unthinkable. Shikamaru's ruthless slaughter of the Sound Three would now be filed away as something their true friend hadn't really done. Someone else who merely looked like the Shadow User had done it instead.

"Are you all done interrogating me now? Well?" No one said anything; they just stared, "Alright then, shoo! Be gone! You're taking up space and scaring the other visitors!" The group started to scatter. This time, everyone looked amused, rather than alarmed. _They learn fast._ "Oh, Neji, could you stay for a moment? I need to talk to you."

The young Hyuuga prodigy paused and nodded graciously.

"And Naruto, I need to talk to you later," She said, narrowing her eyes at the boy, "Much later." The blonde grinned foxishly at her then ran off, chatting amiably at Sakura and Kiba. The Hokage watched him for a moment fondly before turning her attention to the young Jounin before her. Fortunately, he had also been watching Naruto with a kind expression on his face, so he didn't begrudge her the wasted time.

"What is it you wished to speak to me about?" Neji asked.

"Come to my office first." She replied, "While this isn't a top secret matter, I wish to keep it as quiet as possible." He nodded and followed her to her office in the hospital silently. She analyzed him the entire time.

While outwardly completely calm and at peace, inside he was still seething with emotion. There was very little negative emotion present in his eyes however. The surface-most emotions were curiosity, and a little worry. Underneath, she thought she read ambition and two other things that were too deeply buried to see properly. _If I had his eyes, I might be able to read these things, but I think I can guess as to one at least._

Resentment. While Neji no longer resented his younger cousin, Hinata, since she was so clearly guiltless, but the rest of the Main House was not so guiltless. And Neji honestly resented them. Kakashi had reported his speculations as to why Danzou had wanted Neji to be the observer, and she agreed with his assessment. It wasn't fair that Neji be held back by a pack of insecure idiots, but the Hyuuga prodigy was still the best choice to observe Shikamaru, for many reasons.

Yes, he was familiar with the young genius so he was more likely to spot abnormal behavior in Shikamaru. But more than that, Neji was a friend of the other boy, and so was more likely to forgive temporary frustration- and hurt-based behavior, whereas an older Jounin would declare the Ascended youth insane. _And furthermore, I can easily predict that Shikamaru is going to _need_ his friends by him sooner rather than later. Having Neji stay here to watch him is the perfect excuse to keep a friend near him._

She opened her office and gestured for Neji to precede her before she closed the door and made her way to her desk. The Hyuuga boy waited until she had sat down before he did so himself.

"So what is it you wish to discuss in private?" He repeated.

"It's about Shikamaru," She said, leaping straight in, "But first, what rumors about him can you report to me?"

The young Jounin grimaced slightly, "There are several rumors floating around, and few of them are complimentary." He said, "People are afraid, and I can't for the life of me understand why."

"Oh, can't you?"

"…" he sighed, "No you're right, they are afraid of his potential power, they are afraid that he might go insane, wielding his new, unpredictable powers. And they are simply afraid of the fact that he's _different _now."

She nodded, "This is why I'm assigning you to watch him, because much of the council is afraid of him as well." Neji sat up straighter, his face carefully blank. "The council is concerned over the fact that we simply don't know much about Ascended Bloodlines, and we don't know what it is that causes them to go insane with such distressing regularity. So they urged that a Jounin observe his behavior, and it was recommended that you, a Hyuuga, be the one to observe him, what with your perceptiveness and all.

"I agree with having you observe him, but for different reasons. Of his friends, you are the only one who is a Jounin, and as a friend, you are more likely to spot aberrant behavior and will be able to judge if it is simple disorientation over all that's happened or a sign of something worse."

Neji nodded, "I have come to know him well since that one mission…" he admitted.

"And I know that you want field experience for ANBU, which is why I'm upping this assignment a little." She grinned as her Jounin eyed her warily, "Right now, no one has a single _clue_ as to what Shikamaru is currently capable of. Your additional assignment is to help him figure out his new abilities and train them to their full extent." So far, not ANBU worthy field experience. "This falls under the category of experimental Jutsu, and is potentially dangerous."

Okay, now ANBU worthy. There was a crater the girth of the Academy just east of the city where a lightly tweaked Katon no jutsu had had more dramatic effects than had been previously expected. Kage no jutsus were more likely to be less… dramatic, but from what Neji had seen of them, they were no less deadly.

This assignment was shaping up to be a very tricky and stressful assignment: observe (and the unspoken; restrain if needed) Shikamaru's mental state, help train the potentially unstable Chuunin, help said Chuunin experiment with potentially highly dangerous unknown jutsus and somehow keep the fact that the first part was occurring at the same time a secret for as long as necessary.

Tsunade smiled lightly as she watched Neji's mental gears whirl; put into this new light, the Shikamaru Observation mission was at least B-level, but more like A-level in _potential_ lethalness. And now she was going to up the stakes just a touch more.

"To add yet another layer, I'm going to include another person that needs watching over." She said sweetly, earning a light glare. Compared to what Naruto and the long missing Sasuke were capable of, this glare was nothing. "Naruto is going to be kept to Konoha grounds for a while, and I know that he is _not_ going to be _happy_ about it. Do try and keep him from retaliating, would you?" _Now_ the mission was A-level. Trying to keep _Naruto_ of all people out of mischief…

But it could be done, especially if Neji was clever about it. Tsunade could think of a number of ways that the Hyuuga prodigy could help Shikamaru and keep the blonde out of mischief at the same time. And if she could, the young Jounin, who knew both better than she did, definitely could.

"I accept the mission," he said graciously, "but I expect for you to spin this in my favor for ANBU."

"Gleefully," The Hokage said calmly, "the branch of the council that's in Hyuuga's pocket expected this mission to thwart your goal of becoming ANBU. Using their own ploy against them is one of the few politicaling joys I get." The youth nodded, then stood and bowed his way out at her dismissal. She had thought that the kid's mental gears had been working over-time before; that had been nothing compared to what was going on behind his eyes now. But then again, she'd given him plenty to think about.

* * *

Many, many miles away, only a few hours after the Godaime's interview with Hyuuga Neji, a silver-haired, bespectacled figure received a report from his operatives in Konoha. He scanned them briefly and with mild interest. At some parts, that interest became sardonic amusement. _Orochimaru-sama will enjoy this;_ Kabuto mused. He glanced at the sun briefly to judge the hour. His master would be in the petitioning chamber at this time, good.

Orochimaru didn't exactly hear petitions, per say, but he did hear news and requests regularly. The Snake Sennin was old and wise, and he knew that a Hidden City didn't run itself, it had to _be _run. And if he was to keep direct control over all aspects, he had to hear what was needed, what had gone wrong, or right, what needed changing, etc.

But it was also a good time to hear what was happening with his enemies, and new potential prey. Kabuto came to the door of the chamber where Orochimaru would listen to one petitioner at a time and moved confidently to the head of the line. Some people glared, others grumbled, but most just accepted his position without comment. There were distinct benefits to being one of the Master's favorites after all.

The current individual inside finished explaining the difficulty he was having over the lack of fresh greens, received his response and left quickly, walking backwards while bowing his way out. _Wise, very wise_, Kabuto decided as he entered and knelt carefully a set distance from where his Master was enthroned. Beside him, as always, was Sasuke, kneeling on a raised cushion beside Orochimaru's throne.

"Well?" Orochimaru drawled calmly. From this, Kabuto understood that his Master was in a good mood. _Good for me, hopefully I'll improve his mood further._

"I've received reports of interesting happenings in Konoha, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto said, "The Nara boy has survived the Ascension process and is currently recovering comfortably. What skills and abilities he may have are still unknown, but I'll receive that report as soon as anything substantial is learned."

"Interesting," The Snake crooned, idly stroking Sasuke's hair in the same way one would a cat's fur. _An appropriate comparison, for the Uchiha brat is certainly Orochimaru-sama's pet._ "Do you have more news?"

"Indeed," Kabuto answered, "apparently the bulk of the council, lead by Danzou's faction, is most- _displeased _with the Ascension. According to my sources, someone even demanded that the Nara boy's chakra be sealed, least he do something regrettably. The Yondaime's lackey, Arashi, led the counter to that, so instead of anything dramatic being done, Nara is merely going to be put under Jounin observation."

"By his sensei. Asuma, wasn't it?"

"Asuma is his sensei, yes, but the observer is going to be Hyuuga Neji. And according to my sources, both Nara and Hyuuga are going to be kept within the city until Nara has control over his new powers."

The Snake Sennin grimaced and dug his fingers into Sasuke's hair while he mused over the information, the action causing the youth to wince slightly. Kabuto noted that Sasuke had dropped his eyes, hiding them. Also wise, the medic nin bore no fond feelings for the Uchiha and would eagerly report anything that could be viewed as disobedience. Angry, resentful eyes were viewed as disobedience.

_Ungrateful brat, he has no notion of the kind of gift he's been given. He's been given the opportunity to be one with the genius that is Orochimaru, and he rebelled against that. He gets to be a part of our Lord's quest to gain all jutsu, something I would do anything for. All I may do is lend assistance, a thing any might do. I will be forgotten in a few short generations, but not Sasuke._

Was Kabuto resentful? Oh, a tad.

"Patience…" Orochimaru thought aloud, "I'll simply have to be patient. Hyuuga is too useful to be kept penned for long, and Nara will probably become the same. Sasuke-" the Snake Sennin turned to his pet, "What do you know of Hyuuga and Nara? Can they be converted as you were?"

Sasuke turned his wince into a blink and looked up obediently, clearly thinking hard. "I'm- not certain." He admitted finally, "I know very little about either. Hyuuga Neji wasn't in my class, so I didn't notice him much until the Chuunin exam, and Nara Shikamaru wasn't important, always sleeping whenever he got the chance."

He half-lidded his eyes in thought, "The rest that I know of either is what I over-heard during the Chuunin exam. I had heard that Shikamaru was particularly clever during his tests; and that Neji had been exceedingly brutal in his fight against Hyuuga Hinata."

He glanced appealingly up at the Snake. "Hyuuga Neji might be the best bet if you wish to convert either, his resentment against the Main House is strong, from what I heard and from judging his fight. But with Shikamaru, I don't know. It would depend on his loyalty. I've never heard him declare loyalty to anything, you might be able to sway him, but I honestly don't know."

"Well enough," the Sennin said, turning his attention back to Kabuto, "What more news do you have?"

"One other thing that may or may not concern your acquiring of Hyuuga and Nara. It has been said that Uzumaki Naruto will be sequestered to Konoha city-limits for a period of time. Probably until the Godaime can come up with a good reason to send him back out." Kabuto shifted his glasses. "By all reports, both Hyuuga and Nara view the Kyuubi brat as a good friend, and if the three of them are bound to Konoha for a long time, that bond will undoubtedly deepen."

"How… _irritating!_" Orochimaru growled, clenching his fist in Sasuke's hair, causing the youth to stifle a yelp of startled pain. Kabuto hid his smirk with an effort. "No help for it, stronger actions must be taken. Have your operatives try and convince people to have the two sent out as soon as possible. The less time they spend in that wretched boy's presence, the better. He has the disturbing ability to corrupt perfectly good tools with distressing regularity."

The Sennin relaxed himself with an effort and cupped the back of Sasuke's head in as near an apology as any would get. Kabuto snarled to himself, why was the boy worthy of such gestures when _he_, Orochimaru's right hand and most loyal follower, was not?

"I'll send the message as soon as I leave." Kabuto said instead.

"Good," The Snake rose gracefully, forcing the medic to hide his hungry gaze, "I've had enough of this farce for today." He sighed, gliding towards the door, "Sasuke, attend me." The youth rushed to stand just behind and to the left of his Master's side, moving with far less grace to Kabuto's biased eyes, although the observers outside the chamber would have said that Sasuke was the more graceful and elegant.

But the illusion of elegance was completely ruined by the sudden fear and despair in the boy's half-mad eyes. Everyone knew that Orochimaru's tastes ran to just-nubile boys; and Sasuke _was _a favorite of the Snake's… _Just one more thing for me to be jealous about. Laying with Orochimaru-sama can't be nearly as bad as that idiot makes it out to be.

* * *

_

The hospital doors opened and Shikamaru staggered out, then went over to lean against the wall for a bit. He'd finally been released after over 24 hours of further observation and Tsunade judged that he was fit to be released. When she had declared that, she had also informed the young Shadow User that he was going to be on recovery leave for a week. Then she expected his to work his butt off to figure out his new abilities. While she had been say the last, she'd been glaring. She knew his reputation as the laziest shinobi in Konoha, and she was determined that he didn't live up to that reputation right now.

_Huh, like I'm actually going to work just because she wants me to. Right, me thinks she doesn't know me as well as she thinks she does._ The thought of actually _working_ and _training_ left him feeling less than thrilled, especially right now. Tsunade had also been so kind as to explain some of the changes that had occurred inside him. The most notable and obvious were his chakra channels. They were now 100 larger than they had been.

_Oh, the implications._ There were a number of things that having larger chakra channels meant. One of the more immediate effects that Shikamaru was noticing now is that it took more chakra for him to feel recovered. The amount of chakra that his body had right now would have had him at 80 recovered if his channels had remained the same size. Currently, that meant he was only 40 recovered and that's how he felt. He had to have twice the amount of chakra flowing inside him to feel up to snuff.

_It's as if my blood vessels suddenly doubled in size but I still had the same amount of blood. I feel anemic, dizzy and weak, but I'm not, technically._ But that was just now, while his body was still reeling from the Ascension. Once he recouped more, his body would generate more chakra more quickly and would have a much larger area to store it. The body could only hold so much power, even though chakra was generated constantly. Excess spilled out of the body in the same way heat spilled from fire. Having larger chakra channels let Shikamaru hold onto more of that 'heat'.

But the channels weren't the only thing that had changed. There were also minute little alterations in his brain; not his _mind,_ but his brain. The Shadow User hadn't been too keen on that when he'd been told, surprise, surprise, but there was nothing he could do about it. He simple took as much comfort as he could in what Tsunade had said, that none of the alterations were in the parts of his brain that seriously affected personality. Most of the alterations, in fact, were in the parts of his brain that affected his chakra control and his physical body.

In a word, everything inside him was a little _different,_ and he felt it. Everything felt just a little _off_, and his Empathy did not help in the slightest. Feeling other peoples emotions just seemed wrong to him, like an invasion. It was one thing to gauge a person's emotional state from physical cues and facial expression, anyone could do that, with enough training and perception. But it was another to feel things no one else could in a way that no one else could control.

_Looks like I'll be training after all, _Shikamaru thought, scrubbing at his face with his hands,_ I want to get a handle on this Empathy thing and figure out the ethics of it. _ He grimaced,_ ethics, gah! What a subject to be thinking about in my first full week off since I graduated from the Academy! But, I've got no choice. People are shoving their feelings up my nose, so I _know_ that people are uneasy around me now. If I can tell them even a little bit about my thoughts on my new powers, they relax a little, 'cause it'll be clear that I've thought on it._

He sighed suddenly and leaned his head back against the wall, staring at the clouds. It hadn't just been the hospital staff that had been uneasy, it had been his friends, teammates and even his father that had felt… anxious, apprehensive. Even a little scared.

Asuma had brought Ino and Chouji in to inform the final team member that they had to go on a mission and leave him behind. Chouji and Ino had been plainly unhappy that they had to leave Shikamaru behind. But, there had been an edge to the discussion… like they had been confronted with something that they both had _thought_ they knew… but they weren't so sure anymore.

Asuma, being more experienced and worldly-wise, hadn't had as much of that edge to his emotions. It was there, but stifled. _He feels an instinctive dis-ease to the unknown, and right now I'm an unknown quality. But, he knows _me_, he knows what I'm like. He's like a second father to me, and I know that the bond is reciprocated. _Shikamaru closed his eyes for a moment in deep thought, _in fact, I think that next to Gai and Lee, Asuma and I have the closest Sensei-student bond._ Huh.

And because of that bond, Asuma trusted his student not to lose himself in what had happened. That was the other, much stronger emotion that Shikamaru had felt from his sensei, trust. But there was also a great deal of calculation whenever the older man looked at his other two students. Shikamaru hadn't needed to use his new Empathy to read why, just an exchange of glances and a half shrug sufficed.

Ino and Chouji had come to rely on the third member of Ino-Shika-Chou a little too heavily. Whenever an incident occurred, Shikamaru would come up with a plan, pass it to Ino, then let her become the driving force while Chouji supplied the muscle. That's how it always worked. But the times that Shikamaru had been sent on a separate mission after he'd been promoted had left Chouji and Ino in a lurch. The three-man body was suddenly without its brain.

Shikamaru's projected long absence from the team would force his teammates to think for themselves, something that they needed. Another exchanged glance had informed the Shadow User that his sensei expected him to work on his muscle and drive at the same time. _Great, another call to train. What is with people and this hassle to train. I don't wanna!_ The childish thought brought a faint smile to Shikamaru's lips as he returned his gaze to the clouds, but the next thought killed it slightly.

Team 10 wasn't the only one leaving. Team 8 was already gone. Hinata, with a silent shadow of Shino, had come halfway into his room to apologize for the fact that she and her team were leaving on another mission and wouldn't be there to witness his recovery.

Shikamaru had taken great care to reassure Hinata that he knew that he had her good wishes. He'd always been fond of the quiet girl, it was hard not to like her in fact. She was the only female in his acquaintance that didn't drive him up the wall. Not that he wanted to date her or anything, he wasn't about to challenge either Kiba or Shino for that right, even if he had been interested.

_So, my team and Team 8 are gone, Team Gai's off somewhere too, Lee proclaimed that loudly enough,_ the Shadow User thought, rubbing his still faintly ringing ear. His father had a mission too, and that visit had… hurt. A lot.

(Shikoto) had come in, radiating anxiety and fear, amongst a cocktail of other emotions. The man that had once been the son's hero had grown more and more distant after that one botched mission. (Shikoto) had tried to be there, but missions had always gotten in the way. The distance between father and son hurt, and Shikamaru didn't know what to do about it. Especially now, when Asuma trusted the young shinobi more than the real father did.

_Arg, enough delaying, I have to go home, _he gulped as he pushed way from the wall and faltered a few steps forward, _home, to face Mom. By myself, with no Dad to act interference. _Not something that Shikamaru looked forward too, he'd always been intimidated by his redoubtable mother.

But first, there was another problem. Shikamaru had stopped to not only gather his thoughts, but to re-gather his little strength. It hadn't helped much, he still felt drained. Getting down the stairs to the street was easy enough with the rail to cling to, but the walk after was hard. _Shit, I really don't have much left do I?_ The brunette made it a rule not to drain himself on a regular basis, but he was definitely drained now. Walking took all his concentration.

After a little ways, he was grateful for that, since it meant that he couldn't focus on the emotional states of the people around him. What little he did notice was an echo of what he'd felt in the hospital, only the echo was louder than the original shout in this case. The people around him who recognized him were _afraid of him._ They were _afraid _of _him_! No one, not once in all his life, had ever been scared of Nara Shikamaru. Oh, people had been scared of the Konoha shinobi who was too damn clever and persistent for his own damn good, but scared of the boy he really was?

Never. Why should they? He wasn't a threatening figure, and it was clear just by looking at him that he'd rather go take a nap than get in a fight. So the fear that was pressing into his senses, as people stared, gossiped and spread the fear further... Gods, how could anyone bear it?

Shikamaru paused to lean his side against a blank wall to catch his breath and try to wall his mind away from the fear. While he was doing that, he felt a ripple. There was someone out there behind him that didn't care that there was an Ascended Katoku-jutsu user in the area.

It was just a simple normal person, someone who was thinking about things that made him slightly frustrated and angry, and just a little depressed, all emotions that were firmly under control. There was a strong undercurrent of resignation… but all of that got washed away with a small start of surprise and then a happiness that overwhelmed everything else. This person practiced being happy above and beyond everything else. He, for it was definitely masculine, was racing closer to him. Much closer.

"Oi! Shikamaru!"

#Pounce!#

#Thud!#

_Ack! I've been glomped!_ Naruto tackled Shikamaru to the ground and hugged him thoroughly while proclaiming happiness and relief that he was out of the hospital finally. The blonde was also thoroughly ignoring the brunette's loud protests at being pounced and glomped.

"Will you get off already? Off! Off you madman! This is indignifying"

"Aw, since when have you and dignity had more than a passing acquaintance?" Naruto laughed. _There's something wrong here, that was way too smart for Naruto. I better check for Henge, or maybe one of the Yamanaka's possessed him._ Shikamaru smacked him upside the head, making the blonde yelp and give him the teary-eyed, lower-lip quiver. _No, that's the right response, guess it's the real deal. And who else would be shameless enough to pounce someone in public?_

"Knock it off already, it's too troublesome to deal with you like that." Shikamaru said, attempting to get to his feet. Naruto succeeded in rising, and, after the brunette's forth attempt, helped him get up. He next offered his shoulder when Shikamaru started to list sideways, which was gratefully accepted.

"Hey, you alright?" Naruto asked when Shikamaru slumped against him like a dead-weight. _Am I alright? I just got up from three days of fever, my brain's been turned inside out, my chakra channels have exploded, my body is warped, I have _no_ resources left and I just got pounce by this idiot, who weighs probably thirty pounds more than I do. Am I alright?_

"Fine, just tired." he said, "Really tired, and I want to go home and sleep for, oh, a month?"

Naruto snickered. "You're always tired, 'cause everything's just too troublesome for you, right?"

"Humph." The brunette responded, turning his head away in mock offense. Inside though, he was basking in the unforced happiness and affection Naruto was generating. There was a lot of worry there too, but that was fine. Naruto was worried because he cared, and after all of the sharp fear that the Shadow User had been forced to sense, simple positive emotions felt… good.

"So, uh, which way's home?" The blonde asked. Shikamaru blinked.

"Eh?"

"You look like shit, no offense, so I'm gonna help ya' home, only…" Naruto grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head with his free hand, "I don't know where you live."

"Baka," Shikamaru stated, then pointed, grateful beyond words that he was getting a hand, "That way."

The boys headed off in the direction of the Nara compound. While far less prestigious than the Hyuuga or abandoned Uchiha compounds, the Nara compound was by far the largest of any of the clans thanks to the extensive deer herds that was the passion of most of the clan. Because of this, the compound was at the outer edge of the village. So at the end of the walk there, Shikamaru had ample reason to be heartily grateful for Naruto's ungrudging help, he simply wouldn't have been able to make it on his own.

"Wow," Naruto stated when they got there. He wasn't staring at the house, a simple, homey, two-storied building like hundreds of others in Konoha. He was staring at the vast fields that were behind it.

"Help me over to the fence?" Shikamaru asked anxiously. One of the reasons that he hated to go on long missions was on the other side, and he needed his fix after nearly a week in the hospital.

"Uh, sure." When Naruto and Shikamaru got to the fence, the brunette leaned over, placed two fingers in his mouth and whistled shrilly. And answering whistle, more like a bugle, came from just over a distant rise. A few moments later, a small herd of deer raced over, vaulting whatever fences lay in their path with ridiculous ease. Naruto's eyes bulged.

They bulged even more as the herd approached, these beasts weren't the small puny things one normally thinks of when one hears the word deer. The leader of the herd slowed to make his way to his master in stately grace and… posed when he noticed the stranger. The rest of the herd was less dignified, swarming Shikamaru with nudges while shamelessly begging.

"Shi-shi-shika?" Naruto stuttered, "Wha-wha-wha- _Huge!_"

"Hm? Oh, I know." the Shadow User replied off-handedly, "Yakul, stop posing and get over here! We already know you're gorgeous!" The great beast obeyed and glided over, lining up against the rail. Shikamaru pulled himself onto the stag's back with practiced ease and got his deer-fix. The day that a Nara can't sit on his riding elk is the day that the coffin needs to be ordered. Naruto's eye's were now fit to fall out. Shikamaru took pity on him. "These aren't normal meat-and-antler deer, they're a project I've been working on. Yakul and his herd are War Elk."

* * *

Fix, Deer-fix: I just recently went on a two and a half week vacation… Without my pets. Permit me to assure you, when your pets are your babies, you need your cat/dog/horse/bird/etc. fix regularly. Yakul is Shika's baby, he needs his deer fix daily if not more often.

* * *

A.S.: I'm Not Dead! I swear to the gods I'm not! I just got stuck on one scene and… 

Shika: Quit lying.

A.S.: Yeah, yeah, alright. I suffered from burn out. End of semester, too much work, too much family and too many fics demanding attention and… yeah. The _other _problem lies elsewhere. My muses are my main charas and they have not been helping lately. Sasuke's sulking since I made Shika the main chara here and not him. Shika's no help, he's too lazy-

Shika: With all that you're forcing me to do here! I have a right to try and be lazy!

A.S.: Right, Naruto is-

#Distant explosion#

#equally distant voice# Naruto: I didn't do it!

A.S.: Ahem, Itachi's also one of my muses and he's-

Itachi: #silently hands A.S. a small sheaf of papers#

A.S.: #Quickly scans# EEP! Dammit Itachi! While you quit trying to get into Shika-kun's pants!

Shika: #sits up# Gulp! #bolts into nearest closet and barricades the door#

A.S.: Yeah, that's what 'Tachi's trying to do, he liked being a main in "For Love of my Brother", and for some bizarre reason he likes Shika-kun as well, and he keeps trying to make me write a fic that lets him do the dirty. And he simply won't listen when I tell him no more fics.

Itachi: You do not assist your cause with your Yaoi Fangirl fantasies.

A.S.: #Beet red# Wha-wha-whatever are you talking about?

Itachi: #Holds up two books of 'Love Mode(notorious yaoi manga)#

A.S.: Ack! Where'd you get those? _How'd_ you get those? Those are mine!

Itachi: I have my ways.

A.S.: Pilferer! Thief! Damned raven!

Shika: Is it safe to come out yet?

Itachi: #sexy purr# Of course it is.

Shika: ….. That means no.

A.S.: Gimme my manga!


	3. War Elk

New Bloodlines, chap three

Author Notes: Apparently I'm susceptible to bribery. A wonderful, wonderful person, BEA87, made fanart for me. Here's her deviantART account: http// bea87. deviantart. com/

She made a couple of beautiful pieces for this fic, and since she did that, I decided to update this one more quickly. Am I a pushover or what? Just make some pretties for me and I do whatever you want, including updating out of schedule. I can't wait to see what else she does; this chapter has some parts that would be too easy to make comics of. (grin)

(11-7-06)

* * *

Once upon a time, way before the city of Konoha was founded, even before most of the family class came to settle the Konoha city valley, there existed four clans; the Hyuuga, the Inuzuka, the Aburame and the Nara.

These clans actually existed in relative harmony, with only a small amount of jostling for rank, each relying on the others for survival. The Inuzuka used their dogs for hunting, the Aburame used their bugs for gathering, the Hyuuga aided the other two by using their eyes to find food. And of course the Nara had their deer, a steady, reliable source of meat, milk, hide and medicinal antlers.

Nara deer were completely unlike any other deer species, instead of being strictly herbivorous, eating only plants; they were omnivorous, eating both plants and animals. This meant that, because meat was a much better food source, the deer were much larger, stronger and had more nutrients in meat, bone and antler than their lesser cousins. But regardless of that fact, they were useless in war.

The Inuzuka's had their highly loyal, highly intelligent dogs to assist them. The Aburame's had their insects which they could direct at will. The Hyuuga's had their incredible eyes and fine chakra control. But the Nara's only had the hereditary high intelligence, and unshakable loyalty to those that earned it, to give to their allies in combat. Until one of the more inventive youngsters thought of altering what the Nara's did have, their deer.

Thus the War Elk line was started with highly selective breeding, only using the largest, the strongest, the most loyal and above all the smartest of the three other lines, the milk-, meat- and antler-lines. The War Elk in their peek age were larger than most horses and could wield sharp hooves and dagger-like antlers, and let's not forget the sharp fangs this omnivorous line had. And in highest contrast to wild deer, these War Elk were _smart._ Not as smart as an Inuzuka shinobi dog perhaps, but far smarter than any other domesticated animal. They were, theoretically, a deadly weapon.

But they held one critical flaw, those deadly antlers. Deer shed and re-grow their antlers every year, only having fully mature antlers during late summer and fall. At some point in late fall or early winter the antlers are shed and aren't re-grown until spring. Throughout spring and into summer the antlers are 'in velvet', the bone growing inside a fuzz-covered thin skin packed with blood vessels. In this stage, the antlers are acutely vulnerable; if the velvet antlers are cut, crushed or otherwise badly damaged it's possible for the deer to bleed into sickness or even death.

Because of this critical flaw, the War Elk project was scrapped and the line bred back into its three parent lines. Until Shikamaru's cousin, Akira, decided to revive it.

Akira was the big brother that Shikamaru had never had. He had been kind, gentle and amazingly tolerant of his eight-year-younger, little cousin who had trailed him everywhere. But the one thing that Shikamaru had admired most in his cousin was Akira's defiance of custom and tradition. Akira's father had been, and still was, a deer-herder. Traditionally, Akira should have been one as well. Instead, he'd gone to the Academy and had done rather well.

Akira had also done well in the pains-taking task of breeding out the War Elk line from the three parent lines. The only reason he'd been able to do this at all was because he had boldly requested and received Shikato's permission (Shikamaru had helped there, pestering his father to grant that permission). And he'd been successful, in spite of the ridicule from the rest of his family. But he had never lived to see the end of his project. Akira had died in his second Chuunin-level mission. Shikamaru had silently vowed to not let his cousin's work go unfinished.

Also, Shikamaru had what Akira did not, he had Yakul. Yakul had been one of the last offspring of Akira's first War Elk stag, and was the best thus far. Yakul's dame had died due to birth complications, and Shikato had decided to give the newborn fawn to his son as a kind of test, to see if Shikamaru could be responsible enough to raise the newborn. Since Shikamaru had been eight at the time, the test was valid enough.

So this was the reason that Yakul was the youth's 'baby', because in a sense, the elk was. And this was also the reason for the great amount of trust and mutual affection between the elk and the youth, they'd grown up together. And Yakul had earned every scrap of love and devotion that Shikamaru lavished on him.

Even for the highly intelligent War Elk line, Yakul was smart. Really, _really_ smart. He had learned over two hundred verbal commands, three hundred and fifteen physical cues, and could be trusted to carry out commands long after he'd left Shikamaru's presence. He could kill in a heartbeat, or carry an egg in his mouth from one end of Konoha to the other without breaking it. Yakul could even be trusted to watch after a small group of children, and had on multiple occasions pulled an errant youngster out of danger without being told what to do. This included saving two children from drowning and yanking another away from an unattended fire. The noble beast was just that smart.

And it was Yakul's first male offspring that had allowed Shikamaru to validly claim that the War Elk line was not doomed to failure. Hikaru, Yakul's first son, didn't start growing his antlers until late summer. The younger stag had his antlers throughout the winter, then shed them in early spring. Shikamaru could point out that while one War Elk would indeed be worthless for part of the year due to velvet antler vulnerability, _two_ War Elk, with different antler cycles would cover each other.

The only other arguments that the rest of the Nara clan could put forth after that were temperament and training. Training took years, naturally. And the Nara clan were all rather lazy. Shikamaru couldn't counter that one, he'd trained Yakul in a labor of love, and if you didn't have that attitude toward you personal War Elk, you wouldn't be able to train it properly. The other problem was one that Shikamaru was dealing with at the moment.

"Uh, Shikamaru?" Naruto squeaked, "Cou-could you call your deer off?" The Nara youth was already trying to figure out the best way to do that actually. Naruto had innocently hopped the fence, figuring that deer equaled passive. Not with War Elk, they were highly territorial and required an introduction from an accepted source before they permitted a stranger to approach. So they'd cornered Naruto, lowering their antlers, for even females had antlers in most of the Nara herds and all of the War Elk herds.

"Nasha, Shina, Kala!" Shikamaru called out. The three does named, the more dominant females, all lifted their heads to stare at their acknowledge leader. "_Friend._" Nasha and Shina sniffed Naruto again, then wandered over to their human, begging for scritches. But Kala snorted and tossed her antlers, which were far smaller than Yakul's but still formidable. Since it was late summer, they were coming out of velvet. Kala's still had some scraps of velvet left, which made her look even more threatening. The velvet rags looked like scraps of skin… bloody scraps of skin…

"Friend." Shikamaru insisted. Kala glared at Naruto, who was doing his best 'I'm just a meek and innocent bystander, don't mind me' impression, snorted again and then pranced off, tail flagged, neck arched. Naruto breathed again.

"Sorry about that, I should have warned you that they're territorial." Shikamaru apologized.

"Yes, you should have! I think I just lost about five years there!" The blonde snapped, then winced back as he received many a glare. Yakul, of course, was above all this, only being concerned that his human not stop scratching. "Um, yeah, so these are War Elk, huh? They're certainly a lot scarier than I woulda thought. How are you going to use them?"

"Descriptive explanations are too troublesome," The brunette complained, "I'll show you when I get my strength back, Yakul and I have more than a few tricks." He slid off of his elk's back, leaning heavily against his flank. "Come on, I want food, a real bath and bed, in that order."

Naruto started to head over to lend his shoulder to Shikamaru again, but backed away when Yakul snorted warningly. With a slightly evil laugh, Shikamaru properly introduced the blonde to the elk, and then pointed to the gate near the house. Yakul served as a crutch all the way to the back porch, where the low eaves blocked the large elk.

"Field," Shikamaru ordered as he transferred his weight to Naruto's willing shoulder. The stag looked at the brunette mournfully for a moment before heading back, leaping the high fence effortlessly.

"Wow," The blonde said, staring. It was one thing for a trained shinobi to leap great distances and forbidding heights, it was another for a mere animal to do the same. Shikamaru permitted himself a small smirk at the feel of the blonde's genuine admiration before indicating that he really wanted to sit down. Another War Elk convert was born.

The 'new convert' opened the door and helped Shikamaru in.

"'Tou-san? Okaa-san?" The brunette called. He asked for his dad just on the off chance that he'd come back early and had decided to rest a bit before checking on his son. But only silence answered the call. Shikamaru gestured for Naruto to continue, and the two made their way to the kitchen. There was a note on the kitchen table in his mother's handwriting. It was only a statement of the fact that she left on this date on a mission and didn't plan on being back until that date, but it was all that Shikamaru needed. He stifled a sad sigh, he should have known better than to assume that his mother would wait until he got out of the hospital to take a mission.

Naruto said nothing; he only helped his friend into a chair at the table before puttering around in the kitchen.

"What are you doing?" Shikamaru asked.

"Making food for you," Naruto answered easily.

"I'm assuming you know how to cook something other than ramen?"

"_Yes_, I'm no five-star chef, but even Sakura says that the food I cook is actually edible." The blonde said defensively.

'Actually edible', not much of a recommendation, but Shikamaru could sense Naruto's determination. Normal arguments would be pointless right now, the blonde wouldn't hear them. And this was puzzling, why was Naruto so set on helping the brunette? Was it because of the fact that Shikamaru had acknowledged that he needed Naruto's help and had essentially stated that fact, if not in so many words? Shikamaru knew that the blonde didn't have that many good friends, which was also puzzling, and he knew that the adults more often than not didn't like the blonde at all, which was enormously puzzling.

What was there not to like about Naruto? Yes, he tended to be loud and mildly annoying, but that was only at first. Once you hung out with him for more than five minutes, he calmed down and dropped the volume. Make sure he didn't get too excited, he was remarkably good company, always cheerful and genuinely funny. Shikamaru knew that there was more to this antagonism than met the eye, and he knew that he'd been given a sizable clue during that fight against Sound, but right now he was too tired to think about it.

After a few minutes of puttering, Naruto came back with a platter of sandwich wedges, far more than Shikamaru could eat on his own. But the brunette didn't utter a word of complaint when the blonde grabbed one and muttered 'payment for the help' around a mouthful.

"Baka," Shikamaru chided with a smile, "don't talk with your mouthful." Naruto beamed happily before munching away. The two boys had only just made a dent in the sandwiches when there was a knock at the door. The brunette started to struggle to get up, but then Naruto stood, glared at him fiercely until Shikamaru sat back down, and then went to answer the door himself.

* * *

Naruto trotted over to answer the knock and had to restrain himself from humming. It was nice to be needed, and wanted as well. Shikamaru had made it obvious that he was happy about Naruto's presence, and that felt good. The brunette had leaned against him without reservation, had teased him gently and had otherwise made it clear that he was comfortable and content in the blonde's presence.

To others that might be normal or un-noteworthy, to Naruto it was something worth singing about. Even in Team 7 he hadn't gotten that kind of acceptance. Kakashi had always held himself a little away from his team, Sakura had first resented Naruto, and ever since he had admitted Kyuubi's presence to her, she had kept herself a little distant from her teammate. And Sasuke…

Naruto shook his head to chase thoughts of the missing Uchiha away. It wasn't worth thinking about _that guy_ right now, not when he had another, truer friend who needed him. So it was in a determinedly cheerful frame of mind that he opened the door to greet the person there.

"Neji! What are you doing here?" Naruto smiled happily. One of his other favorite people, Neji had been very, very kind to him ever since the blonde had gotten back from his training journey.

Neji smiled slightly up at his younger friend, "I could ask you the same question, Naruto-kun. I hadn't realized you'd taken up living at the Nara residence."

"Oh, I haven't, it's just that Shikamaru needs a baby-sitter-"

_"I do not!"_ Came a yell from inside the house. Neji's smile grew as Naruto ducked his head at the yell with a grin.

"Okay, a nurse-maid-"

_"Naruto, I'm warning you!"_

"Ah, someone to help him-" Naruto paused, and when this phrase wasn't accompanied with a yell of protest he continued. "-since he's so weak right now." Naruto paused again. No protest, right now, "So that's why I'm here, Shika needs a human crutch. What's your story?"

"My story has two parts to it, but I'd like to explain it inside." Neji craned his neck to look down the hallway behind Naruto, "If I'm invited?" He asked loudly.

_"Of course, come on in. Just whap Naruto for me while you're at it."_

Naruto clapped a hand over his mouth to stifle his giggles while Neji shook his head in mock-exasperation as he climbed the whole three stairs that separated the small front porch from the dirt track leading to the house. In obedience to Shikamaru's request, Neji lightly tapped Naruto's head with his closed fist before making his way further into the Nara household.

It didn't take long for Naruto to lead Neji to the kitchen where the Chuunin and the Jounin eyed each other passively, after Shikamaru glared at the blonde for moment.

"So what brings all the way out here?" Shikamaru asked with mild curiosity. He'd gotten to know Neji a bit better in the two and a half years since the younger brunette's promotion, but not by much. The two liked each other well enough in an 'I don't know much about you, but what I do know I like' sort of way. There was a great deal of mutual respect between the two, Neji respected Shikamaru's intelligence, Shikamaru respected Neji's skill. And Shikamaru felt no antagonize for the young noble ever since Neji had yanked the stick out of his ass with Naruto's assistance.

But Naruto wasn't aware of all this, he only knew that as the two were looking each other over there was no tension in the air, only curiosity and respect. Which also made Naruto happy; he liked it when his friends got along.

"There are two things, as I mentioned to Naruto." Neji stated with immense dignity, "One, I heard that you'd been released from the hospital and I wished to express my congratulations on that and see how you faired in person."

"And the real reason?" Shikamaru drawled, "Without all the 'proper phrasing' crap added in?" Naruto quickly turned his laugh into a cough, and blinked innocently at Neji's mild glare. But the Hyuuga soon relaxed and looked back over at the Nara.

"Tsunade has requested that I assist you in your training to discover and gain control of whatever new abilities you might now have." He said, "She felt it would be best if someone you know and are comfortable with helped you."

Shikamaru grimaced at the mention of training. "Okay, and no offense, but why not Asuma-sensei? He was my Genin team sensei and he knows me only too well."

"Granted," Neji answered while Naruto settled into a chair to watch the verbal tennis match. _Two geniuses facing off, score! I only hope they don't get too technical, then I won't be able to keep up. D'oh!_ "But Asuma is senior to me and therefore can't be spared at the moment. Also there's these-" Neji tapped the corner of his right eye, "If anything major happens, I should be able to notice before things get- complicated."

Shikamaru sighed and leaned back in his chair, "Can't argue with those points, and Asuma-sensei's been trying to get Ino, Chouji and I up to Jounin level. There's no reason for him to skip out on training those two just because I have… issues." He grimaced again glaring at the floor away from his two guests, and Naruto noticed that Neji's face became more serious for a moment.

"You do realize that your sudden Ascension is the only reason that I, as well as your two teammates, plus Lee and Naruto here are alive right now, correct?" Neji stated firmly. Shikamaru tensed, carefully staring at nothing. Naruto contemplated not breathing so he wouldn't distract the other two.

"I understand that," Shikamaru said carefully, "but I wish this fact could be explained to others."

"Ah." Was all Neji said.

"Shouldn't you, ah-" Naruto spoke up, making the other two swivel to stare at him as if they'd forgotten he was there. _Ha, I can too be invisible. Gotta brag about this to Sakura-chan, later._ "Shouldn't you just prove that you're not really different at all by acting the way you normally do?"

"Huh, an unusual amount of common sense from you," Neji said, a slight amount of a teasing tone in his voice. Naruto stuck his tongue out at him, much to the amusement of his friends.

"You are right Naruto, that will be the best way to deal with this." Shikamaru admitted, "I've noticed that people don't like having their noses rubbed in a fact they don't want to admit. Explaining things to them won't help, they'll ignore it. Still," he sighed, "it'll take awhile for the fact to sink in and there are still going to be people who refuse to see reason. I don't like people being _afraid _of _me._"

Naruto bit his cheek to keep from saying that you kind of got used to it after awhile. If he said that, his friends would want to know why people were scared of him. The blonde couldn't have that, if he didn't explain why, they'd be mad at him, and if he did-_ They'll pull away the same way Sakura-chan did. I don't want that to happen, I want to keep this closeness I have with these two._

"So, returning to the original topic;" Neji said, making eyes return to him, "Shikamaru, you agree to having me assist you in training and researching your new abilities?"

Shikamaru lounged back in his chair. "Don't see how I can avoid it, if Tsunade-sama-"

"Baa-chan." Naruto corrected impishly. Shikamaru lifted a brow at him while Neji stifled a sudden chuckle.

"…Alright, Baa-chan ordered it. And I know you won't be too evil about the training."

Neji arched a brow elegantly at that but said nothing. Then, in respect of Shikamaru's obvious fatigue, he excused himself. Naruto sat up and swung his head back and forth to stare first at Shikamaru and then at Neji's retreating form.

"Do you still want help or should I leave you the heck alone?" Naruto asked his friend.

"I think I'll be alright now, the food helped," Shikamaru said after a moment of inner probing. "But you don't have to leave if you don't want to, I'm not about to kick you out."

The blonde blinked at him, then bounced over to offer his hand. The brunette smiled at him gratefully and accepted the hand. But when the two reached the bathroom door, Shikamaru finally chased the bouncy blonde away kindly.

Naruto left the house, determinedly holding to the warm feeling of acceptance he had right then. It had been very nice, hanging out with Shikamaru like this. But as he trotted down the lane leading back to the heart of the city, he got a bit of a surprise.

"What're you still doing here?" He asked Neji, who was leaning against one of the many trees lining the dirt road.

"Waiting for you," He answered, ignoring the innocent rudeness of Naruto's question. There had been no hostility in Naruto's voice, only surprise.

"Oh? Why's that?" The blonde asked, walking over to his other friend.

"I'd like to commandeer your assistance if I may," Neji said, "Tsunade let slip that you are going to be in Konoha for a while, and I'd appreciate it if you could help me train Shikamaru."

"No prob, when do we start?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"_Tomorrow_?!?" Naruto yelped, "You can't start tomorrow, Shika's half-dead as is, you'll kill 'im!"

Neji rubbed his ear slightly, "I doubt that, I plan on moving slowly at first, and I also have a feeling that a good night's rest in his own bed will do Shikamaru a world of good. He seemed much revived since my last visit to him in the hospital."

"Ano, I guess so, but still…" The blonde frowned, "You promise you'll go easy on him?" Naruto trusted Neji, but not in training. He'd seen the Hyuuga once in just a mundane spar against Lee. The Hyuuga was vicious. Naruto didn't think Shikamaru would survive if Neji was his usual self tomorrow in training.

Neji, guessing the direction of Naruto's thoughts, smiled reassuringly. "I promise I'll be gentle. I usually adjust my strength to that of my opponent. Against Lee, I need to go all out. But against Shikamaru, especially now, I doubt I'll need to use even half my potential." Naruto frowned, but mostly at the implied insult towards Shikamaru than anything else, but he still didn't agree to the training. So Neji cheated, "Still, if you don't want to help, I guess I'll have to find my own way of prying Shikamaru out of bed." He turned away, walking back to the city, "Pity, I was hoping that you'd of assistance there."

"Oi… That's cheap…" Naruto growled, plans and plots of how to wake up the notoriously lazy Chuunin whirling through the blonde head. _Best start simple, hmm, I should- _"I'll help."

Neji glanced back, "Good, I'll pick you up tomorrow before heading over to the Nara residence."

* * *

Yakul's hungry bugling woke Shikamaru just after dawn. After a few moments of blinking, yawning and mild cursing, the youth hauled himself out from under his comfy blankets and headed down the stairs. Already this morning he felt much better, but still a little weak. Evidence: his struggle to get his damned muck-boots on. Like in most traditional Konoha households, shoes were left outside. Shikamaru could swear that his herd was laughing at him as they watched him roll around the back porch, arguing with his damned boots.

Finally, the bloody, clunky things were on and he headed off to give the deer their grain ration. Since the Nara fields were so extensive, the deer didn't really need to be fed, but to ensure the best health in the herds and to get them used to the idea that humans were good things they were given a measure of grain near the house each day. Since his parents weren't there, that duty fell to Shikamaru.

The chore was quickly done, and the youth walked back to the house, yawning. As he opened the door, a marmalade tabby cat zipped in with him. This was a little odd, not the presence of the cat, but the fact that it wanted in. Herds meant grain, grain meant mice and where there were mice, there were cats. But the local cats usually avoided the humans, so Shikamaru blinked in surprise at the cat that had claimed an overstuffed armchair as its personal property.

The cat stared back for a moment, then proceeded with kitty yoga, one hind leg raised high and proud, head bent to- well. The human youth could now clearly see that his feline guest was male.

"Hello to you too," He said, making the cat pause to glare at him before resuming the infinitely more important task of assuring absolute cleanliness. With a small laugh, Shikamaru trudged up stairs and returned to bed. Sleep came quickly, even for him.

The Nara youth didn't think he'd been asleep long before he sensed imminent danger. There was someone in his room, close, and that someone was exuding an aura of gleeful mischief. Shikamaru lay on his side, back turned to the door, so when he opened his eyes there was nothing immediately before him. But out of the corner of his eye there was-

A bucket. A very large bucket with condensation sprinkled over it to declare that its contents were cold. Behind the bucket was a grinning face with bright blue sparkling eyes and a shock of vivid blonde hair. Naruto, holding what could only be a bucket of ice-water.

"Don't. You. Dare." Shikamaru stated in a 'I will kill you slowly if you do' voice. Naruto's grin broadened.

"Well, if you don't get up quickly enough…" The blonde sloshed the bucket a little, allowing a trickle of the _coldest_ water this side of freezing to splash down. The effect was immediate; Shikamaru leapt up and tried to jump out- only his legs tangled in his blankets- so he reached out to steady himself and-

* * *

Neji was waiting downstairs patiently when he heard something.

"**_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_**"

_I guess Naruto has woken Shikamaru up._ A few moments later the blonde zipped down as if chased by the Kyuubi himself.

"Help me! Hide me! He's going to kill me!" The blonde babbled, bolting to hide behind the unmoving figure of Neji. About a second after he had done that, down came the reason for Naruto's fear; Shikamaru, dripping wet, spitting fury and very much awake.

"Neji," The brunette panted angrily as he came to a stop at the foot of the stairs, "Move. I need to kill him. Slowly, oh so slowly…" Naruto whimpered and cowered a little more. Neji cast his eyes to the heavens and wondered why he was doing this again. Oh yeah, because Tsunade told him to, that's right.

Neji had gone to pick up Naruto about a half hour after dawn. Naruto had protested that action so much that Neji wondered which wake-up would be worse, Naruto's or Shikamaru's. When, in exasperation, Neji had threatened to leave the blonde behind and wake up Shikamaru on his own, Naruto had awoken completely, grinning like a maniac.

The Hyuuga couldn't help but wonder what kind of mischief-demon he had unleashed. He was certain he'd unleashed something terrible when the blonde had zipped off, only to return with a large metal bucket swinging at his side. Neji had managed to catch a glimpse of roughly an inch of ice cubes layering the bottom of the bucket. When they had reached the Nara residence, Naruto had dashed over to an outside faucet in the side of the house to fill his bucket. Neji had used the pause to use his Byakugan to check if Shikamaru really was still asleep.

The Chuunin had been, so Neji had permitted the blonde to go wake him up, after stating firmly that Naruto was to try and use _normal_ means to get Shikamaru up _before_ using the frigid contents of the bucket. _I'm still not certain if he understood me or not_, mused Neji as he stared at the outraged form of Shikamaru. The boy was only wearing a tank top and briefs, both of which were plastered to his body by the water. The Hyuuga wondered at the fact that the soaking clothes weren't steaming from the Nara's outrage.

"Hyuuga, move." Shikamaru demanded again as he stood face to face with the teen-aged Jounin. "I _need_ to kill Naruto." He had a kunai, and it looked like he knew how to use it.

"I can't do that, the only reason Naruto is here is because I requested his presence." Neji said, one hand holding down the kunai

"Well, I guess I need to kill you too."

"You'll get in trouble if you do that."

"Right now I don't care. He poured _ice water_ on me when I was _in bed_."

"It was an accident?" Naruto whimpered.

"He was just trying to wake you u-"

"I was _already_ awake"

"Oh… Oops?"

"_OOPS?!?!"_

"So sorry."

"You don't sound it."

"Go take a shower and get changed, you'll feel better."

"I'll feel better after I kill the blonde baka and his commander in crime."

"I _said_ I was sorry…" Naruto whined. Shikamaru glowered ferociously at him before stomping back up stairs, muttering evil things about Naruto and about how he was going to have to set his mattress out to dry now because of him. Neji blew out a sigh and glanced down at the still-cowering Naruto. The blonde was still watching the direction the kunai-wielding fiend went, but then glanced up at Neji when they both could hear a shower running.

"My _hero_!" The blonde maniac cried out, glomping Neji firmly.

"Ack! No glomping!" Was the dignified protest as the Hyuuga was knocked to the floor by the sudden attack. He then proceeded with the equally dignified task of trying to pry the blond off of him. Good luck. The 'attack' was only stopped when Naruto's stomach protested its empty state.

"Oh yeah, I haven't had breakfast." Naruto stated, sitting up and dropping Neji. Since he'd been struggling against the blonde, Neji clonked his head against the ground. "And I bet Shika-kun's hungry too. Are you hungry? I'm gonna make breakfast, maybe Shika-kun won't kill me if I do that!" With that declaration, Naruto zipped off to the kitchen, leaving behind a dazed and confused Neji.

All the while the marmalade tabby watched the entire drama with great amusement.

* * *

A.S.: Um, Shika? You can put the knife down now…

Shika: #evil chuckles# fox fur gloves… fox teeth charms… yes… killing good…

Naruto: #hiding in bunker# I didn't mean to douse him, honest! A.S. make him stop, he's scaring me!

A.S.: I'm beginning to wonder if I can. Besides, I have my own problems. I am so breaking my own rules right now. I promised that after releasing the second chapter of a fic, I'd go in order of first to last in updating. Releasing this now, even with the pretty bribes, is so breaking that rule and my trust with my fans. Gomen ne, I know I'm being bad. The only other thing I can say is that I'm having trouble writing the next chapter in my pocket bishonen fic, so I went with the story I had inspiration on. I'll try and work on that soon, promise!

Neji: Urk! Who cares about that? Help me restrain this mad-man!

A.S.: Shika! No killing the cast! Yipe, put that knife down!

Naruto: Heeelllp meeeeee!


End file.
